Child&#39;s rocket ship mockage



July 20, 1954 T, ALSTQN 2,684,243

CHILD S ROCKET SHIP MOCKAGE Filed March 2'7, 1953 IN VEN TOR.

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A QK L Patented July 20, 1954 CHILD'S ROCKET SHIP MOCKAGE Thomas E. Alston, Lyons, Ohio Application March 27, 1953, Serial No. 345,085

Claims.

My invention relates to childrens toys. Particularly, my invention has to do with the type of toy known as knock-down toys with parts packed in shippable and storable box containers and ready for erection when desired.

The invention purposes, through the use of simply constructed and assembled low cost parts, bearing printed and colored indicia in minicry of real life elements, to provide an approximation of a rocket ship of acceptable similitude to and for the amusement of a child. To this end, the invention has for an object to provide a central main panel on and from which collapsible and foldable appendage members mount to create three dimension semblance of such jet or rocket ship. By its use, any .boy in the living room of his own home can, on a rainy Saturday afternoon, jet in his imagination through planetary space back and forth to the moon without serious risk.

Another object of the invention is to provide such panel and members so related that the same may effectively combine with bed pillows or a household chair to extend the simulation.

A particular object of my invention is to provide a rigid panel having dial simulating indicia on one lateral face thereof, as one might expect to find on a rocket ship instrument panel, were such to exist, and having an inflatable gas bag associated with the panel to simulate, when infiated, the nose of a rocket ship and a rearwardly extending drape cloth also associated with the panel simulative of the enclosing hood of the rocket ships cockpit.

I contemplate that a structure embodying my invention by reason of its size and three-dimensional displacement will not only stimulate the imagination visually but also it lends itself to use with phonograph recordings of rocket roar and radio transmitted commands as from an air base or rocket ships of the fleet further simulating the audio conditions of flight, as will be explained hereinafter.

I acknowledge that among my predecessors are those who approach the problem of providing erectable flying machine mockage of a kind. The fault to be found with the structures of those who went before me lies in the fact they lack the provision of something to get into, like a cockpit, something to shut out the everyday mundane things, as the hood of my embodiment provides. My predecessors were satisfied with merely providing simulation of the instruments and meters of flying, without surrounding these parts, as I do, with an aura of surrounding conditions provided by the cockpit simulating hood.

My invention has many other features which will appear from the following description and upon examination of the accompanying drawing. In such description and drawing, I describe and show a practical form of construction which embodies my invention. By this selection, how ever, it is not to be assumed that my invention.

is limited to the precise embodiment described and shown in the drawing of which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the selected embodiment of my invention shown in an erected position for use;

Figure 2 is an end view .of the embodiment shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view of a section in side elevation of the embodiment shown in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a View of a section taken along the plane of the line 44 indicated in Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a view of a section taken along the plane of the line 55 indicated in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a view of a section taken along the plane of the line 6-6 indicated in Figure 4;

Figure '7 is a view of a section taken along the plane of the line 1'! indicated in Figure 4; and- Figure 8 is an enlarged view of the means shown in Figure 3 for mounting and fastening.

the rear edge of the drape to a household chair, cushion, pillow or the like.

port the remaining elements and withstand the strain the toy will take in its use. Such a material as a stiff or reinforced card-board, fibreboard or plywood will do. The panel i9 is cut, as will be observed from the Figure 4. drawing,

preferably to have an arcuate upper edge H and two opposite parallel depending side edges i l.

The side edges 14 are joined at their bottom ends. by a lower end edge 15 with an involute arcuate edge portion 16. This configuration of the panel it lends to the mimicry, in a manner as by later description becomes obvious.

The panel 59 has two lateral faces H and 16.

The face 18 of the panel l0 bears imprinted thereon indicia 2Q simulative of the many dials,

meters, gauges, indicators and the like one nor mally would expect to find on the instrument panel of a bona fide aircraft. The indicia 2% may.

be arranged over the panel such as shown in Figure 4 to extend the simulation. Also the face? a 13 of the panel it may bear imprinted indicia of structural rivets 2! simulative of the ship construction detail and, near the lower end edge l5 in approximate registration with the involute arcuate portion [6 thereof, there may be an imprinted semblance of an escape and boarding hatch 22. The panel face l8 may be suitably colored to simulate the gray sheen of sheet aluminum with white. faces of the dials 29, each enframed by black mounting rings.

Mounted on the panel 10 is a rigid sheet 39 which, as shown in Figure 3, is bent to an L- shape, viewed edgewise. The sheet 38 may be formed from light gauge sheet metal or a relatively stiir" card-board. The sheet has tabs ii, at spaced points along its upper and lower edges. These tabs 3! are adapted to be received in openings 32 formed in the panel l0, as shown in Figure '7 of the drawing. Thus, means are provided for mounting the sheet in an installed position on the face [8 of the panel, to create the appearance shown in Figure 4.

The sheet 3b is intended to simulate the head or control box through which the rocket ship control levers operate, These. control levers are simulated by a plurality of graspable knobs 35. each of which extend through a slot 36 formed in the longer leg of the L-shaped sheet 30 as shown in Figure 3 of the drawing. E'ach knob may be moved along its respective slot 36 to any desired position in keeping with whether or not the rocket ship is increasing or decreasing speed, banking, or climbing in the imagination of the pilot.

Fastened to the arcuate edge H of the panel l9 and downwardly therefrom for a distance along each of the side edges I l is the end edge of a drape 49. The drape 46 is preferably formed from a flexible sheet of plastic material. It extends rearwardly from the face E8 of the panel Id, like the tarpaulin of a covered prairie wagon, to form a hooded cockpit H into which the child, as pilot, may climb, as through the hatch 22. Preferably, the drape w is opaque and bears structural indicia 42 imprinted inside and outside thereof. Certain area such as A3 of the drape may be transparent and thereby simulate a porthole in the cockpit cabin wall.

To support the drape in the desired hood contour, I provide a rear prop 45. The prop 45 is formed, like the panel [0, preferably from a reasonably stiii board material and has an arcuate upper edge it. The prop 45 is connected along said arcuate edge it to the drape 4Q along a line on said drape spaced from and parallel to the line of connection between the panel IQ and drape 49. By this arrangement, the drape 4% will hold very nearly to the desired semi-cylindrical shape shown in Figure l. The mockage shown in the drawings is designed for use in conjunction with the household or living room arm chair 5%. Hence, the prop 45 which engages the upper edge 5i of the chair back 52 as shown in Figure 8 may be shorter than the panel H). To fasten the drape 40, in such instance, I employ pins 54 which penetrate the drape 4i) and extend into the chair back.

In order to elevate the panel in for use with the chair 50, I provide the panel H) with suitable legs 69. Each leg 60, of which there are preferably but two, extends through a pair of axially aligned barrel bearings [H on the lower end sides of the panel Hi. When panel I!) is made from card-board, the bearings 65 may be formed by making two closely spaced parallel slits 62 in the board and forcing the material 63 between the slits into a loop extending beyond the plane of the panel face l8. That is as shown in Figure 5 of the accompanying drawing.

The legs t6 are formed preferably from rod stock and may each mount a conventional rubber caster 64 at the foot end thereof. The bearings 6! permit the legs 60 to he slid into overlaying relation with the panel, when the legs are not needed or in use, and to be extended, when required. In order to lock the legs 60 in an extended position, the upper end of each leg is preferably bent normal to provide a dog leg portion 55. The portion 65 is adapted to engage a shoulder 66 on the panel l0 when the leg thereof is fully extended and thus hold the leg in that position. The shoulder 65, on the form shown in the drawing, is fashioned by cross-slitting the panel H1 and forcing the panel material outwardly relative to side ill of the panel to produce a tab or car against which portion 55 may shoulder, as shown in Figure 5.

Aifixed to the panel it; and extending forward from the face i: thereof, there is an element simulative of the nose of the rocket ship. Such element comprises an inflatable bag "it. Preferably, the bag it is formed from sheet plastic which, through a valve or opening at I i, may be inflated with air. When inflated, the bag it: has a substantially closed and pointed end cylindrical shape. The bag may like the other elements, bear imprints l2 simulating structural details. In this connection, I preferably provide the bag with aileron. simulating fins '23 of card board removably engaging the bag along arcuately spaced parallel and coaxial lines as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3. The bag it has a selvedge around its cylindrical base outside the air containing chamber thereof. The selvedge '25 provides material through which staples it may pass to engage the panel it and preferably the edge of the drape id, thus to assemble the bag, panel and drape into a single construction.

The weight of the nose E0 in relation. to the dis position of the legs to and feet casters $4 teeters the panel ii} forwardly exerting a drawing pressure on the drape st. This tends to keep the drape 4Q taut and in the desired cabin hood configuration shown in Figure 1.

As before mentioned, I contemplate that one might use a phonograph recording of rocket roar and radio transmissions. In order to allow the child within the cockpit ll to control the phone-- graph, I provide flap covered openings in the sides of the drape it.

It will thus be seen from Figures 1 and 3 of the drawing and the foregoing description that my invention provides the semblance of what for a child is a means .to interplanetary flight and many hours of pleasure,

I claim:

l. A childs rocket ship mockage comprising a rigid panel having dial simulating indicia on one face of said panel in a similar arrangement and appearance as that of a rocket ship instrument panel, an air inflatable flexible bag having a substantially closed end cylindrical shape when inflated simulative of the nose of a rocket ship and. in engagement with and in axial extension from the other face of said panel, a drape in engagement with an edge of said panel and in extension rearwardly therefrom to define with said panel a simulated enclosed cockpit in which a child may sit as though at the rocket ship controls,

2. The childs rocket ship mockage described in claim 1 having inaddition a plurality of fiat aileron-fin simulating elements in engagement with said bag along arcuately spaced parallel extending lines thereon.

3. The childs rocket ship mockage described in claim 2 having leg parts slidable on said panel to a position in depending relation to an edge of the panel and adapted to support the panel at a height whereby a household chair may be used to seat an occupant of the mockage cockpit.

4. The childs rocket ship mockage described in claim 3 having in addition an auxiliary head board with an arcuate edge in engagement along said edge with said drape at a point spaced from said panel and along a line parallel thereto and adapted to support the end of said drape sheet in an outline simulative of a hood, said drape sheet being opaque and having a transparent area within an outline simulative of a port hole.

5. The childs rocket ship mockage described in claim 4 having a rigid sheet having an L-shape when viewed side edgewise and having tabs at spaced points along the upper and lower edges thereof, said panel having openings adapted to receive said tabs for mounting said sheet on said panel in simulation of the head mounting of the throttle, steering and elevation controls, said sheet having a plurality of parallel slots extending vertically through the upper leg of said sheet, and a graspable handle in slidable engagement with the edges of each slot and adapted for manually directed movement along the slots in accordance with the simulated conditions of rocket ship flight.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,312,563 Moskowitz Aug. 12, 1919 1,925,427 Wurtzer Sept. 5, 1933 2,243,973 Mills June 3, 1941 2,258,531 Baldwin Oct. 7, 1941 2,324,833 Gold July 20, 1943 2,454,693 Foster Nov. 23, 1948 2,608,726 Olson Sept. 2, 1952 

